I know it is not quite a newbie question, but I can't find and answer for it. So how does one start the hunt? What should I know before I start? Any risks associated with this undertaking? Did I load the question enough ;-)

But you have to make contact with the Ambassador. In Sleuth Talk there's post entitled 'Where is the Ambassador'. Apparently there's a bug or something... 'usually' it advertises where the Ambassador is in the City News, but that's not happening, so Ben has said he's in New York TODAY.

Once you contact the Ambassador it's kind of follow your nose...

Before you start you should know:

* They take DAYS. Minimum 3 - Average 5 or 6. So don't hope for an early conclusion.
* The trip will take you to Shangri La. You can't get pirated going to and from. But you can throughout the hunt...
* ... so, you therefore oyu might as well know that you travel through all the cities in search of your Arch Villain
* IMPORTANT You will ALWAYS get enough clues to definitively point the finger at someone... there is NEVER any need to guess.
* At the end of your hunt you will receive a reward... the gold gear you see lots of us wearing
* You will have to travel back to Shangri La to receive that prize. I suggest going back to your Agency first so you can nude up. Coz when you choose your prize you can NOT store your current gear, you can only sell it. So if you like your current gear...
* However, you don't have to collect your prize. You can stack your prizes and collect 2/3/4 at a time.
* What else? You can't store case files. Access Agency Case files, lab etc are locked off to you. You still have access to your Agency and any gear there though.
* It can cost quite a lot. Considering the travelling. Plan for $20,000. That should cover it.

There's lots more, but I think you should just find out for yourself, otherwise it'll spoil the fun, and the challenge.

Yes contacts are very important. AVH is doing lots of AI's alone in all cities. So you need to be comfortable enough doing those. Doing AI's without agency help is hard enough, but without contacts it is almost imposible :P